She found a white cotton T-shirt bearing the logo Hawaii Surf & Sun on top of his hamper and slipped it on before hurrying down the hall. “Gabe?”

  “There you are.” He looked up when she entered the kitchen and smiled, and her heart skipped a beat as her mind showed her several intimate pictures of him in various stages of making love—poised above her, his gaze intense and locked on to hers, lying on his side, watching her with heavy-lidded eyes as he used his hands in the most incredible way she could imagine, laughing at her giggles when he pinned her hands above her head so she couldn’t cover up against his slow, burning perusal….

  She cleared her throat because she wasn’t quite sure how familiar she should be. Should she walk over and kiss him like she wanted to, or were things back to the way they’d been before?

  “Hungry?” he said, his expression turning slightly perplexed when she held back.

  She could smell the food cooking, hear the sizzle of meat on the grill through the door that stood open to the back porch. Surely, if he was still cooking dinner, she couldn’t have slept too long. She hoped. “What time is it?”

  “Nearly nine-thirty.”

  “I’ve got to go.”

  His eyebrows shot up. “Before you eat?”

  “Russ might’ve dropped the boys off at home already.”

  “Kenny’s sixteen. Can’t he baby-sit Brent for a little while?”

  “Normally, he could, but—” She noticed Lazarus sitting at attention in the living room, following her every move. “Your dog’s staring at me as if he knows all my dirty secrets.”

  “That’s because he does.”

  “I don’t see why he has to taunt me about it,” she said with a grin.

  “He’s not taunting. Lazarus just knows a good thing when he sees it.”

  “That dog’s like a canine extension of you,” she grumbled.

  “I’ll take that as a compliment. Alaskan Malamutes are smart. But you have to train them when they’re young or you’ll never gain control.”

  “I’m sure your mother once said something similar about a little boy named Gabriel.”

  “Wrong. I was as angelic as my name.”

  “I bet.”

  He laughed and moved to the sink to wash his hands, and she realized he’d been working on something.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Making a mess.”

  It certainly looked that way, but when she moved closer, she could see that he’d actually been dipping strawberries. Instantly, her mind reverted to the menu she’d given him for dinner tonight. Evidently, he’d gone to some effort to deliver. “Those are for me?”

  He frowned at the results of his labor. “Well, they didn’t turn out quite as pretty as the ones you might see at Godiva’s, but—” he licked his fingers “—they taste almost as good as you do.”

  She couldn’t help smiling at him. “Do you have champagne and caviar around here somewhere, too?”

  He cocked an eyebrow at her. “Don’t you think you’re asking for a little much, considering you haven’t washed one window?”

  “You had your chance for windows,” she said flippantly. “You chose an alternate activity. Ask Lazarus.”

  Gabe’s gaze fixed on her chest. “No regrets on my part. We can save the windows for another time.”

  She could tell he was testing her to see what to expect from her in the future and knew she had to speak up. If she continued to visit Gabe’s cabin, what happened today would turn into a full-blown affair and one of them would wind up getting hurt. Namely her. She was in love with him already. The current of her desire had pulled her in deep—too deep. “Actually, I probably won’t be coming back, Gabe.”

  The smile fled his face. “Seriously?”

  “I think it’ll be easier to cut things off now, don’t you? We both know what happened today can’t go anywhere. Neither of us is in a good position for a relationship, so there’s no need to cause a big stir.”

  “What constitutes a ‘big stir’? We’re both single. We’re both adults.”

  “And we both live in a close community. If word got out…Well, I’m sure my boys would hear about it, and Russ and his family, and—”

  “You’re afraid of the gossip?”

  No, she was afraid of getting too attached, too used to feeling his hands on her body. She didn’t want to see him with another woman after their affair ended and feel the kind of kick-in-the-gut jealousy she knew she’d feel if she hung on to him too long. She preferred to cherish this brief interlude and move on while she could do so with some dignity. “Look on the bright side, Gabe. Now you won’t have to let me down gently in a few weeks.”

  “I’ve told you before I can take care of myself, Hannah. I don’t need you to walk away today so I won’t have to do it later. Just like I didn’t need you to run interference for me last night at the restaurant,” he added as an afterthought.

  She ignored the first part because it was easier to argue about the second. “If you didn’t need me to intercede, why did you let those people monopolize your time? You weren’t enjoying yourself.”

  “How do you know?”

  “I could tell. I know your expressions, your…smiles,” she finally finished.

  “My smiles. God, you’re so…”

  “What?” she prompted.

  “Frustrating!” he said, but she got the impression he meant “endearing.” They weren’t really fighting. They were trying to adjust to the rapid changes in their relationship, and she knew it.

  Lazarus barked and hurried to the side of his master the moment Gabe raised his voice. But Gabe shot him a scowl, and he immediately quieted and sat down.

  “Because I’m wrong?” Hannah said. “You were having fun signing your name on napkins at the restaurant while your food turned cold?”

  He didn’t answer.

  “You more or less told me you didn’t want a relationship. Now you’re saying you do?” she said.

  “God.” He rubbed his eyes. “I’m not sure what I want. You come out here and…and things get wild, hot. Then you get up and say you’re not coming back. What am I supposed to make of that?”

  She’d rejected him before he could reject her. This had to be pride talking. But now that he knew his body probably wasn’t going to fail him at a critical juncture in some future relationship, he didn’t need her anymore. He could proceed with confidence. “You’ll be fine from here on out,” she said. “Just…”

  “What?”

  She wanted to say, “Just know that this day meant a lot to me,” but that was far too revealing. “Be happy.”

  “Great, thanks for the ‘see ya later’.”

  She ignored his sarcasm. “I’m sorry. I wish I could at least stay for dinner.”

  “But you’re in too big a hurry to slam the door in my face.”

  “That’s not it.”

  “You’ve got to be hungry, Hannah. Sit down and eat with me.”

  “I’d like to. It smells good. But I slept too long and now I have to run. Kenny got in a fight last night, and—”

  “What?”

  For the moment, she’d succeeded in shocking him out of the surliness she’d caused with her “no strings attached” response to today. “I know,” she said. “It came as a surprise to me, too. You should’ve seen him when he got up this morning.”

  “Is he hurt?”

  She shrugged. “He has a black eye and a busted lip.”

  “Who hit him?”

  Hannah sensed the same protectiveness in Gabe she’d felt when she’d first seen Kenny’s face. But she didn’t want to acknowledge his support. She didn’t need any more reason to love him. “That’s the problem. From what I can tell, he started the fight.”

  Gabe looked doubtful. “I can’t see Kenny doing that. He’s not the type.”

  “No, but he’s been acting strange lately. All of a sudden, he doesn’t want to go to football practice. This morning he didn’t want to go to the car show with his dad after being excited about it for the past couple of days. And the only thing he’d really tell me about the fight was that Sly deserved what he got.”

  “Sly was involved?” Gabe asked.

  “Yeah, you know him, right?”

  “Of course. He’s on the team.”

  “Well, now I have to pay for Sly’s stitches, and decide whether or not to punish Kenny, and whether or not to make him go over and apologize. But first I have to get to the bottom of whatever is bothering my son.” She started for the back door.

  “Where’re you going?”

  “To get my blouse.”

  “I already brought it in. It’s on the arm of the couch.”

  Switching directions, she scooped up the clothes she hadn’t seen until he pointed them out to her.

  “Why change?” he said. “Just bring my shirt to me later.”

  Evidently he didn’t believe she wasn’t coming back, but she didn’t want to bring it up again.

  “Going home in your shirt would give us away.” She moved toward the hall, but he rolled in front of her before she could reach it.

  “Where are you going now?”

  “To your bedroom.”

  “Why not put on your shirt right here? We’re alone.”

  “No, I…No!” she said.

  “You’re kidding me, right?”

  “About what?”

  “I just made love to you a couple of hours ago. Now I can’t even see you change your shirt?”

  She let go of a dramatic sigh. “Gabe, you’re not making this any easier.”

  “You’re the one who’s being difficult.” He centered himself in the hallway. “You’re in a hurry, remember? Better start stripping.”

  “Get of my way!” She tried to dart around him, but he caught her and pulled her easily into his lap.

  They wrestled, gently nipping each other’s lips as they fought. She’d thought she might have a chance of overpowering him because of the wheelchair, but she’d underestimated his strength. He easily subdued her, mostly because she was laughing too hard to continue the struggle. Then he held her hands behind her back at the wrists and reached boldly under her shirt, as if he had a right to.

  “You’re so bad,” she said as their eyes met.

  “And you’re so good. I think that’s part of the attraction. You know what they say about opposites.” He kissed her, but this time it was a soft, sweet kiss that made her melt. When she responded by nestling closer to him, he grinned down at her. “You’ll be coming back,” he said confidently and let her go.

  “Don’t count on it,” she said. She gave up trying to gain some privacy in which to change, but after she whipped off his shirt, she didn’t hand it back to him. She stuffed it in her purse.

  “Hey, what’s up with that?” he asked, but she could tell he didn’t really care. He was too preoccupied with the show.

  She put on her bra, then shoved her arms into her blouse. “I’m taking it home.”

  “Why?”

  “It’s a souvenir.”

  “Not you, too,” he said dryly. “Want me to autograph it?”

  “No, thanks. I’m not likely to forget where it came from.” She knew he had to be wondering at her motivation. But all she cared about was that the shirt smelled like him. He meant something to her, not his fame.

  When he immediately sobered, she thought maybe he understood. “Be careful driving back.”

  She nodded, grabbed one of his chocolate-covered strawberries, and rushed out the door. She regretted having to miss Gabe’s dinner. After what they’d shared, it seemed sad to cut the evening short. But as much as she knew she’d always treasure the memory, she was a little apprehensive about what she’d done. Had she started some irreversible chain of events that would come back to haunt her later—the way her involvement with Russ had?

  She started her car, did a three-point turn and tried to reassure herself as she headed down Gabe’s long drive. She and Gabe had used a condom. No one knew she was coming out here. Even if they did, they’d never expect the woman who’d injured him to become his lover. And he’d certainly never tell anyone. She could go back to her life and her kids as if it had never happened and—

  Hannah slammed on her brakes. Just as she was about to turn onto the road, a car came barreling around the curve.

  The driver honked impatiently, as if the near-collision was her fault, then the car continued on its way, but for a second, Hannah thought she recognized the person behind the wheel. Leaning as far forward as possible, she tried to get a better view, but it was too dark. She saw only the back of a generic white sedan before the taillights disappeared.

  Maybe she was imagining things. It probably wasn’t anyone she knew.

  * * *

  THE CABIN SEEMED TOO QUIET after Hannah left. Gabe turned on some jazz to fill the silence while he finished cooking dinner. Then he gave Lazarus Hannah’s steak so he wouldn’t have to eat alone. Since the accident, the cabin had been his haven. It was the only place that provided the privacy he craved. But, suddenly, it seemed far too isolated.

  Could one afternoon with Hannah really have made that much difference? Sure there’d been times over the past three years when he’d felt bored or restless. But all he’d had to do was think about playing football again. Then the stubborn competitor in him would take over and weight training or therapy would fill the void. If that didn’t work, he’d mow the yard, weed the garden, or make a new clock, rocker or cabinet.

  None of those activities appealed to him tonight, however. The hours stretched before him, endless and empty. Hannah had simply left too soon. He wanted her to come back, take off her clothes and curl up with him again. Watching a movie in bed sounded like fun. Heck, as long as she was with him, sleeping sounded like fun.

  He wondered what she’d say if he called her and suggested she drive out after the boys were asleep. For most of his life, he’d never had to worry about rejection. Woman always said yes to him.

  But Hannah was different. She cared about him, or she never would have slept with him. He knew that. He could tell by the way she’d kissed him, the way she’d touched him. Problem was, she had this image of what she needed to be in order to be a good mother to Kenny and Brent, and it completely precluded having any fun herself. She’d shut down that portion of her life just as absolutely as he had.

  As if that wasn’t enough, she was also pretty worried about Kenny. Gabe was concerned about him, too. He was concerned about the whole team. He hadn’t wanted to believe that Blaine would take the kind of risks Mike had intimated he might be taking, but now Gabe wasn’t so sure. Kenny wasn’t typically violent. The fact that he’d hurt Sly so badly could indicate a lot of things. It could simply be a coincidence that he’d had trouble with Blaine’s nephew. It could indicate that Kenny had been approached by Sly on behalf of Blaine and reacted negatively, which was a happy thought. Or, not so happy, it could mean that he and Sly were involved in some way. Bottom line, the fight lent credence to what Dale Lindley had overheard in the locker room, what he’d told his mother. It connected Kenny and Sly. Gabe just didn’t know how.

  Maybe he needed to find out. Gabe liked Kenny, didn’t want to see him get swept up in something that could hurt his chances of future success and ruin his reputation as a player. Gabe didn’t want to see that happen to any of the kids on the team. And he wouldn’t stand for having his own assistant working against him. If he couldn’t win a football game by playing on the field, he’d do it by coaching on the sidelines. No one was going to stand in his way, least of all Melvin Blaine.

  When Gabe started to wheel away from the table, Lazarus assumed he was going to work out and trotted expectantly in the direction of the gym. His dog knew the routine. But Gabe couldn’t bring himself to work on his range and coordination right now. He felt as if he’d been beating his head against a wall for the past three years, chasing a dream he was never going to catch while letting other things, possibly just as important, slip right past him.

  But that was a subject he’d have to contemplate later. Right now he needed to figure out what was going on with his assistant coach—which meant he had to make some phone calls.

  Taking out the team roster, Gabe sat it beside him on the counter and dialed the first number. Coach Blaine.

  Blaine lived alone. His wife had died nearly a decade ago, and all his children were grown and out on their own. He answered almost immediately. “’Lo?”

  “It’s Holbrook.”

  Blaine’s voice grew instantly leery. “What can I do for you, Gabe?”

  Lazarus sat at Gabe’s feet, watching him curiously, his ears perked forward.

  “You can start by telling me if we have a problem.”

  “With what?”

  “The team.”

  There was a significant pause. “We have a lot of problems. Our defensive backs are weak, we have a young, rather inexperienced quarterback, we’re giving too much ground on the front line. Maybe you could be more specific.”

  “Kenny Price got into a fight with your nephew last night.”

  “I heard. My sister called me about it earlier. What does that have to do with me?”

  “That’s what I’d like to know.”

  “Nothing.”

  Was he lying? “You don’t have any idea why there might be friction between them?”

  “Absolutely none.”

  Gabe was surprised by how badly he wanted to believe Blaine. As much as he disliked his assistant coach, he didn’t want to see the football program at Dundee High suffer from the actions of one overly ambitious and far too selfish man. “I’m glad to hear that,” he said. “Because if any of my boys—”

  “Your boys?” Blaine interrupted.

  “My boys,” Gabe repeated. “Whether you like it or not, this is my team now. And if you take advantage of your position by getting any of the players involved in something that might hurt them or the program, you’ll be a very sorry man. Do you understand?”

  “You have a lot of nerve, calling me up and threatening me like this,” Blaine growled.